Set Fire To The Rain
by Avangeline Fierce
Summary: Yaoi/Yuri: All families have secrets, but for the Sohmas secrets can kill. A painful memory from the past comes back to haunt Hatori, while a common enemy forges a bond between Kyo, Yuki, and Haru.  Kyo/Haru/Yuki; Shigure/Hatori/Ayame Mpreg; Tohru/Hana
1. Only the Lonely

**Set Fire to the Rain**

**Avangeline Fidela-Pierce**

**Summary: **All families have secrets, but for the Sohmas secrets can kill. New life overshadowed by death, and the power of compassion over hatred will follow in the wake of pained secrets better left buried. Kyo/Haru/Yuki; Shigure/Hatori/Aya Mpreg; Tohru/Hana**  
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**Discalimer: I do not own Fruits Basket. **I am simply playing with the characters and am thankful us fanficers are allowed to do so.**  
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**Rating: Mature 16+**

**Warnings:** This story will contain yaoi, yuri, and mpreg. This story is not a comedy, and will be mature in the scenario itself, not just because of sexual situations. Harsh themes will occur, and even if I am not an especially graphic writer it could still be intense for some readers.

**Universe:** This is set to the anime canon, but I am throwing in a sprinkling of the manga as well. This is because the anime is more open ended and has more to work with as far as changing the plot. My ideas on how the curse works are mostly my own, but if it doesn't hurt my story line I kept it mostly the same as the real story.

**A/N:** Ok a little background information. This is technically not a new story. I started one similar to this on an old account, but it did not turn out the way I liked it so I deleted it. Now that I am on this account I had some inspiration for an updated version of my aborted old one. If elements of this story look familiar, than you probably read it when it was called Somebody's Eyes. This story is written up to the fifth chapter, and will be updated as I have the time which is sporadic at best, but hopefully your wait shouldn't be too long between updates. I have another story going at this time, and plans to start a third one soon so my time will be spread between those as well. I hope to update at least one of my stories a week, that's the plan right now anyway.

**Chapter One**

**Only The Lonely**

Harsh breathing echoed around the stark, almost bare, room. The rustling of sheets on skin followed the steady rhythmic creak of the wooden bed frame. Sounds could be heard amidst the breaths barely legible as emitting from a human let alone being coherent words.

Greedy mouths devoured what was willingly sacrificed. Frantic hands roamed toned flesh, exploring, finding their way to the sweet spots of pleasure. Lingering gazes hungrily consumed the beautiful sights beneath their eyes.

The shyness both parties had shown to the world for so long melted away with the other's touch. It felt so good, so deliciously wrong to feel this way neither cared what tomorrow would bring. Be it condemnation or acceptance tomorrow could wait, tonight was about rapture and stolen passion. Time flew by as they enjoyed the bountiful gifts of their mutual love.

….Several blissful hours later…

"Miss Honda if you don't get up soon you are going to be late for school." Yuki called through the door as he knocked trying to rouse her while maintaining her privacy if she was already up and getting dressed.

His caution was well meaning, but not quite enough, as soon as his knuckles touched the door for a second knock it was opened from the inside and he was greeted by the sheet wrapped form of a certain miss Hanajima. "You will go away and leave right now if you know what's good for you. Tohru-Kun needs her sleep." There was an odd gleam in the dark haired girl's eyes that made Yuki remember why most people in school were afraid of her.

"I apologize, but I know how much she hates missing school." Yuki retained enough of his wits to reply gracefully before retreating like someone had yelled fire in a crowded theater.

On his way downstairs from his failed attempt at rousing Tohru it hit Yuki that, aside from Hana's usual oddities, there was something very strange about what just happened. First of all, for her to answer only in a sheet meant she was at least partially unclothed, and if she was up getting dressed why wasn't Tohru? The night before had been cold, it was still very early in the spring, to think someone would sleep unclothed in weather like that seemed just as odd to him. Also, Hana's hair was tangled into knots, more so than Yuki had ever seen despite her staying the night more often than not lately. Plus how on Earth had Tohru managed to sleep through their exchange at the door, let alone his initial call? Tohru wasn't that heavy a sleeper usually, and even when she did oversleep just the mention of being late for school was usually enough to have her up and in a manic state of mind as she rushed to get ready.

As he stepped into the kitchen still musing on the possibilities, Shigure interrupted his thoughts. "Is she alright?"

Yuki was startled at his unusually blunt question, "I didn't talk to her, Hanajima answered the door and persuaded me to let Tohru sleep in today. Why, is there something we should be worried about?"

Shigure seemed to suddenly snap out of his serious funk and into his clown persona as he waved off Yuki, "Oh nothing, nothing at all. I just heard the bed creaking like someone was having a rough time sleeping last night."

Yuki accepted the ready made excuse, that Tohru may have had bad dreams last night and tossed and turned, making Hanajima ask him to leave her be once she calmed down.

It hit him as he was putting his shoes away in his school locker that there was a different explanation, one that would explain the odd behavior seen from both girl's lately, as well as their blonde haired companion. Could Tohru and Hana possibly?

Yuki wasn't sure what to think about this new possibility. It was enough of a preoccupation even the orange haired cat sitting across the classroom noticed something was off with Yuki that, and Tohru's empty seat, sent Kyo into panic mode. Tohru was known to get into some pretty strange accidents if she was too busy daydreaming to notice her surroundings.

Kyo watched Yuki nibble on his bottom lip wondering just when Prince Yuki had developed such a childish habit. Come to think of it, had the cat ever seen the rat this stressed that he fidgeted in public?

Given that Kyo was the cat, his curiosity was spiked with the mystery, to the point he followed Yuki home, attempting to get the crazy rat to at least tell him why Tohru had missed school.

Finally Yuki was either stressed enough, or had finally decided it was alright to share his concerns, probably the first option. "I went to wake her up this morning and was greeted by a sheet wrapped Hanajima," He began and eventually filled the cat in on what Shigure had said and the conclusion he had come to that hadn't left him alone all day. "I think those two might be in love." Yuki finished.

Kyo tilted his head thoughtfully, not going off like the firework Yuki had been expecting. "Well that explains a lot." Kyo mumbled just loud enough Yuki heard, though he suspected he wasn't supposed to hear it.

"Explains what?" Yuki was not really expecting an answer, so he was suitably surprised when he got one.

"Oh come on, even you Damn Rat should have noticed how they were acting? Sneaking off together, having sleepovers on a regular basis without that yankee with them, and the way that wave girl hovers over Tohru constantly. I'm sure you are right about this, what I want to know is why they wouldn't tell us about it. Is she afraid of us?" Kyo tried to make it sound like the last question wasn't said with much weight behind it.

Yuki knew better, he had been stuck around the stupid cat long enough to know he was terrified of Tohru suddenly becoming afraid of him. "Of course not, they may have just wanted some privacy. I'm trying to decide whether I should talk to her about it or just let things be." Yuki didn't want Kyo to know he was just as afraid of Tohru's rejection.

"I wouldn't know what to say to her," Kyo admitted confused of his feelings, they were mostly telling him to protect Tohru, he didn't feel nearly the jealousy he thought he would once Tohru started dating. Still he knew that if Tohru was hurt over this there would be hell to pay, psychic waves or not.

Yuki didn't have time to answer because by now they had arrived home to see a flurry of activity through the open front door, the scene was given a heighted sense of urgency when they got close enough to identify Hatori's car in the driveway and what looked like dribbled blood leading from the car to the house. What on earth was going on? Did someone get hurt?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Inside the house Hatori was busy working on the injured zodiac member in front of him. Sweat ran down his oddly pale face, his skin was almost green in color as though he were exhausted and a little nauseous, but he scarcely noticed his own condition as he swore lowly in his work. Angry at himself for not treating the wounds immediately, despite knowing that the delay needed to move the injured man to a safer place was worth the risk. If they had stayed at the main house chances were good his patient would be dead already instead of hanging on by a thread. He had only managed a very basic wound dressing before they left, and by the time they had reached Shigure's house the bandages were already soaked through with blood.

Shigure had sent the two girls back up to Tohru's room to get them out of the way the second he had received the frantic phone call from the very upset dragon.

Now dog and dragon were side by side trying to save the life in front of them. Glancing up at the clock Shigure noticed that Yuki and Kyo were due home any minute. "The boys will be back soon, I'll handle them if you can mange without me for a moment." He explained while handing over the bottle of anti-septic Hatori had just called for.

"No I need your hands for a minute, pinch here so the skin meets up, otherwise the scar will be horrible." Hatori ordered sharply, his calm demeanor had flown out the window the moment he had discovered his patient.

"Shigure is someone… Haru!" Kyo had started to ask even before the two boys had entered the house, but there was no mistaking the duel colored hair of the zodiac ox.

"Dear Kami, what happened to him?" Yuki had enough sense to ask while Kyo just stood in shock.

"He was beaten very badly, he was found in his bedroom covered in blood." Shigure started to explain as Hatori added another stitch in the wound, Haru now looked like a cross between a mummy and a rag doll.

"Where was Akito?" The words were out of Yuki's mouth before he could stop them, Kyo nodded silently in the background.

"Akito was not in his room at the time. And well… there is evidence that points to the culprit at least knowing about the zodiac and specifically knowing that Haru is the year of the ox." Shigure was shook up, still trying to process it himself.

"What evidence?" Kyo asked before Yuki got the chance, finally regaining the power to speak.

"He was branded." It was Hatori that answered this time, smoothing down the bandage on the newly stitched wound. Leaning back to look over Haru, he carefully scanned him for any additional wounds that still needed treatment. Satisfied that Haru wasn't loosing anymore blood externally, he finally allowed himself a short breath, Haru's chances of survival had just increased by a percentage but he wasn't out of the woods yet. "I have already checked and found that he doesn't have a broken back or neck, so Yuki, Kyo, help us carry him upstairs and put him to bed. He is going to need to be watched over as he hasn't regained consciousness since I got to him. When he does wake up, or even before, those wounds will need to be cleaned. His biggest enemy is infection, the worst wound was the brand, but he will be woozy from blood loss and is probably going to have many scars from this.

Kyo and Yuki shook themselves out of the horrified stupor hearing about the branding put them in. Wordlessly obeying Hatori, cat and rat worked together to get Haru upstairs and into Yuki's room because it was the closest to the stairs. Shigure and Hatori followed the two younger men to make sure the had Haru resting comfortably.

"How long before he wakes up?" Yuki asked worrying about the ox.

"Honestly? I have no idea." Hatori admitted, his tiredness shining through.

"Ha'ri you will need to rest soon, even if you do have to head back to the main house tonight. You are not fit to drive." Shigure informed him bluntly, his clownish attitude gone when it came to the safety of the dragon.

"I know, but I was hoping to see him wake up before I went to sleep." Hatori protested, Haru's needs came first in his mind.

"You will do him no good if you pass out, you can lay down in my room and we will wake you up if anything changes." Shigure pressed, with Yuki and Kyo nodding in the background.

"Alright, but you better wake me up if he so much as twitches an eyelash." Hatori warned, but he was more tired than Shigure thought for him to give in without more of a fight, the dog had been gearing up for quite the argument.

After Hatori left the other three Sohma men distributed themselves around the room so they could all keep an eye on Haru, all of them worried about the too pale ox.

Yuki let his head fall back against the wall and couldn't help but think this day had gone nothing like he thought it would when he volunteered to wake Tohru up for school. Just what kind of mess was starting up now? 


	2. Sound of Madness

**Set Fire to the Rain**

**Avangeline Fidela-Pierce**

**Chapter Two**  
><strong> The Sound of Madness<strong>

Kyo watched the room silently, twitching now and then as he fought the instinct to get up and move. It had been twenty four hours since Haru had been brought into the bedroom, and he had yet to wake. The room was full of Sohma's again, Tohru had been in and out of the room too but didn't want to intrude no matter how many times the men told her it was ok for her to come in and help watch over Haru. Kyo was sitting on the floor of Yuki's bedroom his knees pulled against his chest, his arms wrapped around his legs, with his head resting on his arms staring into his lap. He was working on forcing his breathing to come in smooth, steady, flows otherwise he knew his rage would get the better of himself. It had taken four people twenty minutes to clean Haru's wounds and change the bandages. Hatori slowly walked them through the process the night before, and once again when he returned in the afternoon.

Hatori was risking a lot to be away from the main house and Akito's demands. Being the Zodiac's god Akito was used to his every whim being catered to. If Hatori wasn't there to jump to Akito's side there could be some very nasty consequences. Kyo didn't know how he had managed to slip away again today, but the cat figured it couldn't happen too many more days in a row.

Haru was still deeply asleep. He would occasionally whimper and try to thrash as if having a nightmare. This was a good sign according to Hatori, if he could dream and react to them, than he was slowly moving out of unconsciousness and into sleep. The bad thing was with every aborted thrash Haru increased the chance of ripping open some of his wounds upping the infection risk and lowering the chance of coming out of this unmarred.

The cursed cat had seen the evidence of torture, and it wasn't lost on him that the ox had an exorbitant amount of older scars in the places not covered by fresh wounds. Even with taking Black Haru's drive towards picking fights into account those were a lot of scars. Kyo himself didn't have that many, and _everyone_ hated the cat.

So what had actually happened to the hotheaded ox? Most sane Sohma's tiptoed around Haru for fear of bringing out his Black side. Even Akito avoided Black Haru, in that state of mind the ox had no moral limits and would attack until the fight was over, or something big managed to snap him out of it. Knowing that, who would be insane enough to attack him? Not to mention strong enough to win against him. There was also the oddity of Haru not changing into his bovine form. The only explanation Kyo could come up with was Haru's body was used to the stress and either didn't change in the first place, or transformed back to a human quickly.

The whole situation was odd, and despite the evidence against Akito, Kyo wasn't so sure it was him. Akito's temper tantrums were quick and violent, Haru would have been found in Akito's room if it had been the God's fault, but from what he heard Haru was found elsewhere. Who else both knew about the zodiac, and hated them? That type of person quickly had their memories erased. This was all beginning to be one big frightening mystery.

Kyo's thoughts were interrupted as Tohru knocked on the open door frame and hesitantly walked inside, "How is he doing?" She asked softly.

"He is still sleeping, physically I believe he will be alright if he continues to heal at the rate he is going. I wont be able to tell anything about his mental state until he wakes up, but he is a tough person to break and should come around with enough time and the right care." Hatori replied fully, for the benefit of the whole room and not just Tohru.

"I'm glad he should be ok. This is horrible, I can't believe this is happened to him." Tohru's large heart showed itself in her worried tone, but she held herself back from a full blown rant. Self control was something she was slowly learning, and Hana may have had something to do with that.

"None of us can believe it either Miss. Honda," Yuki soothed, "But we are all going to have to work together to make sure he recovers fully."

Shigure added his thoughts onto Yuki's statement, "You're right of course. Haru is definitely going to need help. However this happened it was not an accident, he is going to have a lot of issues to work through." He explained.

"Don't all stampede him at once though, with those injuries it wouldn't take much for him to go Black, or transform fully. Let him set the pace on how quickly he talks about this." Hatori warned knowing they would easily overwhelm Haru despite being well meaning.

"When do you have to be back at the main house?" Shigure asked, not sure what kind of welcome awaited the Dragon there.

"Not until the morning, I had the house staff spike his tea with a sedative, it wont wear off until after dawn." Hatori blessed his forethought, he always carried a dose of that strong sedative with him just in case there was an emergency and he needed Akito out of the way. He had used it before, but never under such dire circumstances.

"I think I will head downstairs and start dinner, please excuse me." Tohru left the room without waiting for a response. She really did feel like this was a time for the Sohma family to be together without her interference. She was just glad there was a good chance Haru would eventually be alright.

"She is a good girl, she doesn't have to run away like that." Hatori remarked quietly, having quite the soft spot for Tohru since the day she first came to the main house and reminded him so much of his dear Kana. Those days were over, but having Tohru around helped him believe there was a future worth looking forward to instead of always wallowing in the past.

"She never quite believed us when we told her this was her home now, Tohru is just giving us family time without realizing she has been a part of the family for quite a while now." Shigure responded to Hatori's comment.

Kyo heard the exchange between the older zodiac members, but he was focused on Haru's face, or more specifically his eyes, they were darting back and forth beneath his eyelids and he was breathing heavier, as if something was chasing him. He twitched his arms and legs but there didn't seem to be any sign of the thrashing he had done earlier. "Hey, I think he might be waking up." Kyo pointed out.

All three Sohmas whipped their gazes to Haru so fast Kyo wasn't sure if the sound of cracking necks was real or his imagination running rampant on him again. Hatori had kneeled down at Haru' side, checking his vitals, and putting his palm on the injured boy's forehead. "He isn't feverish, that is a very good sign. He might really be waking up soon." Hatori's small smile of relief was something rarely seen, but it was definitely a welcome sight.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The darkness surrounded him like a shroud. He pushed further into it, coming no closer to finding a way out. He felt choked and chained, unable to move or breathe despite the feeling of retreating deeper and deeper. He wasn't moving, something was pulling him, he realized as the sensations he was feeling sorted themselves out in his mind.

There was burning coming from his hip. It bit into him, draining his strength, pulling every ounce of energy into its fiery maw. Skin muscle and sinew all protested the enemy, sending their own jarring reports to his already overwhelmed brain. Other points of pain throbbed in counterpoint to the all consuming pain of his hip.

He started fighting against the blackness holding him hostage, thrashing and wriggling h tried to free his arms. Getting angrier and angrier as the dark held him tightly in its grasp, not easing no matter how hard he pulled, or twisted. Screaming with suppressed rage he yanked harder and harder, not caring about the waves of pain washing over him, the whispers of memory returning to his brain adding fuel to the fire. One sharp tug and a kick sent him careening out of his captor's grasp, he felt himself falling, going faster and faster, this time with no restraining energy. A free fall to the bottom of an abyss.

Giving into the feeling, he let himself fall, turning himself so he was diving straight down, ready to hit the bottom of wherever this was. Nothing could hold him forever. He sensed some kind of bottom or wall ahead of him, gravity rushing him to his doom. He broke through the layer of caging night, and came up swinging.

The light stung his eyes, his body registered pain on top of pain, and he felt arms and body holding him. He was being restrained again, and he fought with what little strength he had dazed and delirious from his battle and fall through the darkness.

When Kyo had pointed out Haru might be waking up, they sat back and watched the ox, hoping he would come to. But before Haru opened his eyes he started thrashing again. This time was the worst he had ever done, it was like he was fighting an enemy none of them could see.

"Quick! We have to hold him down, or he is going to rip everything back open!" Hatori barked as Yuki dived for Haru's left side and Kyo grabbed his left, they both lay flat against Haru locking Hands around the Ox's shoulders, using each other to stabilize their grip on the still valiantly fighting boy. Shigure laid himself across their locked hands, keeping steady pressure on the front of Haru's hips, knowing his left thigh was branded he worked to keep that leg as immobile as possible.

Hatori knew there was nothing more he could do to hold Haru still, so he sat back out of the way of the other three, avoiding the flailing limbs. He was watching Haru's eyes as they finally shot open, but he knew immediately that there was a big problem, those were Black Haru's eyes, full of violence and rage. "Careful, he has gone Black, but he is awake, try talking to him. Don't yell just talk." Hatori called loud enough for Yuki, Kyo, and Shigure to hear.

All three started calling his name, as gently as they could manage, though Kyo soon stopped when he realized that this was Haru, probably the only voice that could bring him out of it was… "Hey Damn Rat, this is Haru he will listen to you, shut up Shigure." Kyo ordered, surprising all of them by his conclusion.

"Come on Haru, wake up, its ok. You are safe now. Its Yuki, can you hear me? You are here at my house with Shigure, Kyo, Tohru, and Hatori. Whoever hurt you is gone, relax and come back to me." Yuki spoke softly and smoothly, saying whatever came to mind that he thought would help White Haru come back.

With a strangled scream, Haru sat straight up despite the surrounding arms, and cried out a single word, "Father!" before falling back onto the pillow. He was exhausted and in pain, but awake and starting to realize where he was. "Yuki? Kyo? Shigure? What happened?" His voice wasn't much higher than a whisper, much different than the shouted word that had all occupants of the room shocked into silence.

Hatori decided it would be best to avoid that issue for the moment, and after shooting a warning look at the three dumbfounded zodiac members, he addressed Haru. "You were found beaten in your room. I brought you here to treat your wounds in safety. You have been unconscious for over a day now, I don't know when the attack was but you have been out ever since I got to you." Hatori spoke slowly and matter of factly so the tired ox could absorb the information.

"Thank you for getting me out of there." Haru responded after listening to him. Though he was distracted by the three people holding him down slowly releasing him so Hatori could check him over and see if the latest episode of thrashing had done any damage. "I'm sorry about that, I had a nightmare before I woke up." Haru explained shortly. He did remember what happened when he went Black, but it was fuzzy and indistinct for the most part without the emotional edge that drove him in that persona.

"You couldn't help it, we understand." Yuki was quick to reassure, still surprised that it was his voice that had brought Haru out of his nightmare, and that it was that Stupid Cat's idea in the first place. He was deliberately avoiding the word he heard Haru scream though, that was a mine field best left for when Haru was feeling stronger.

"Is everyone all right? I thought I heard fighting." Tohru had reappeared hesitantly at the door, not noticing Haru was awake right away.

Haru heard her voice though, and called to her, "It's alright, I just had a nightmare."

When she heard that Tohru's face lit up like the sun and she was grinning from ear to ear, "You're awake! This is such good news."

"Come in and sit down with us, you are one of us, as we've been trying to tell you." Shigure teased as Tohru blushed crimson and walked into the room kneeling at Haru's side beside Yuki.

"How are you feeling?" Tohru asked Haru.

"Like I got run over by a herd of my Zodiac." Haru replied with a weak smile, his sense of humor was something to cling to in order to take his mind off the pain of Hatori sterilizing and rewrapping the wounds he had torn back open.

"We will take good care of you, and make sure you are healed up quickly." Tohru promised him, seeing the wince of pain as Hatori checked the thick bandage on his left leg. "Now I'm not running away, but dinner is on the stove in the kitchen and I don't want it to burn. I can bring up bowls on a tray if you would prefer eating up here?"

"That would be nice, someone had better go help you though as that would be a lot of food for one person to carry. As for Haru, could you please warm up come chicken broth? He shouldn't have anything too heavy for awhile." Hatori answered her questions when it seemed like the others were taking a long time to come up with an answer.

"I'll help Tohru," Kyo volunteered as he really needed a bit of a break from sitting in that room all day.

"Thank you Kyo, and yes I can do that Hatori, its no problem at all." Tohru replied before rising and heading down to the kitchen.

When Kyo was finally alone with Tohru in the kitchen, feeling that the crisis with Haru was lessening, he decided to broach the subject Yuki had brought up the day before. "Tohru, where is Hana tonight?"

"She went home, I asked her to please not come tonight. I didn't think you would appreciate her being here if Haru transformed from his injuries. I was glad we got through last night without Hana getting her memories erased." Tohru had a tendency to babble when she was nervous, and Kyo wasn't above using that to his advantage.

"Tohru, you do realize Shigure wasn't joking right? You are one of us, if Hana is important to you, I mean if she is really close and finds out. We will find a way to protect her. If she is with you then she is under our protection." It hurt Kyo to say that, he didn't like it when things changed, and if their theory was right, things were changing in a big way. He wasn't sure if he would be able to give up Tohru without a fight. Tohru was someone to protect and that's all that Kyo thought as he offered this to her, if it made her happy it was the right thing to do, despite the aching in his chest.

Tohru's eyes widened as she listened to Kyo talk. She was about to flip out and deny everything, when instead she slumped in defeat. "Kyo, I don't know what to say, I just, it's a lot. Hana and I, well things are happening, and I am so scared. Scared I would be rejected the moment one of you found out, I'm still afraid of being cast out again, of losing another home. To hear you say that is the best thing I could hear but still my mind is telling me to run for the hills." Tohru confessed, feeling everything she had locked away well up inside.

Kyo wanted to hold her then, to hug her until her tears dried up, but what good would a cat be to her. Instead he searched for the right words, he was always getting in trouble for speaking before he thought and this was a time he desperately wanted to avoid that. "You will never be cast out. Look at me, I am the family pariah, everyone in the zodiac is programmed to hate me, but here I am in this kitchen. I have been given a home here when I should have been thrown out the moment I stepped through the door. You came here a total stranger, an innocent, and when you learned things that would make normal people run screaming. You just smiled and agreed to keep our secret, knowing we were cursed, and that there were darker things in this family than just the annoyance of changing into an animal. You accepted me when you found out about the cat's curse. We can do no less in return. This family owes you Tohru, even Akito allowed you to come home with us after you went to him directly and fought for the right to stay here.

Tohru was crying in earnest now, big dark tears that clouded her vision, and finally Kyo couldn't hold back. He held her tightly for the heartbeat it took to change, leaving her cuddling his feline form. "We will protect you Tohru, you and Hana." Kyo finished knowing it was true, despite his lingering fear of giving her up. "Just promise me that unless there is no other option, you bring Hana to us, instead of letting her take you away."

"I promise Kyo." Tohru whispered. Shaking herself out of her tears, and putting him down on the floor so he could change back. If she burned dinner over these tears she would just upset herself again.

By the time she had the brooth heated and the rich stew poured into bowls, Kyo had transformed back and was bale to help her carry them upstairs.

"What happened? We heard the sound of you transforming?" Yuki asked suspiciously looking between the two of them.

"Oh that, I was clumsy and tripped. He tried to catch me and we accidentally hugged." Tohru spoke frantically, fooling no one, they knew she was covering something up. The older ones let it go as an oddity while Yuki raised an eyebrow. Kyo mouthed the word later to him, before handing out his share of the bowls.

The rest of the evening passed smoothly as Haru was welcomed back to the realm of the living with food and talk. They all silently agreed to keep the topics light for the evening, Hatori's words from earlier still rung in their ears and they had no desire to have another run in with Black Haru for a good long time.


	3. Heading for a Heartbreak

**Set Fire to the Rain**

**Avangeline Fidela-Pierce**

**Chapter Three**  
><strong> Heading for a Heartbreak<strong>

The next morning Shigure was woken up by Hatori rushing out of the bed and into the bathroom where he proceeded to retch up everything he'd eaten the night before. Shigure was suitably concerned as he followed and observed Hatori with a growing sense of dread, he remembered the Dragon's tear filled confession while they had still been in school. Not to mention he knew Hatori would never risk infecting Haru with his disease by prolonging his stay by sleeping there rather than returning to the main house. That left a rather frightening possibility, which the look of panic on Hatori's normally impassive face seemed to support.

"Does Akito know yet? It's Ayame's isn't it? Its been too long since you were last with me." Shigure asked as he wet a cloth and handed it to Hatori to wipe down his sweaty face.

Hatori froze in reaching for the cloth, this was so soon in happening he hadn't been prepared for the questions. "Yes, it is Ayame's and no Akito does not know yet, no one knows besides you. If Akito did know I wouldn't be in this position anymore. I was hoping this part would hold off until Haru was back in good condition." Hatori had known he was getting close to this point, but felt the risk was worth taking to see to Haru and get some rest away from Akito's demands. He Hadn't really wanted anyone else to know yet, the more people that knew, the more danger he was in.

Shigure watched Hatori lean back against the wall, "What are you going to do now?" He asked knowing there was something more to the Dragon's curse than Hatori had told them about.

"I don't know," Hatori admitted, being uncharacteristically truthful because this was Shigure. "I had thought about eliminating the problem immediately, before Akito could attack Ayame and myself, but I just, I couldn't."

"I'm not surprised," Shigure replied thoughtfully, " I don't see you being able to make that choice, even if you know it would protect people in the long run, people including yourself. You know I won't go telling Akito the moment you turn your back, but I can't lie to him if he asks directly, I would have to tell him. We are going to have to find a way to keep you safe before Akito thinks to ask."

"I know that, and for this it is even more important to keep quiet." Hatori responded quietly, needing someone to confide in.

"What is it?" Shigure knew this was going to be big.

"Akito is going to want it dead, and as soon as possible." Hatori clutched his abdomen as he spoke, his fear growing.

"How far are you?"

"About seven weeks, I have only known for two weeks, its still early."

"So almost two months, we have to keep you safe for another seven, but why would Akito want this child dead so badly?"

"Because my curse is to carry the next God, and only the god. We have five months not seven to figure something out. Akito knows there can only be one God at a time, if Akito is still alive when this one is born it will die. Akito will kill this child before it has a chance to be born to protect his own life from attacks. Plus you know his jealousy has no limits, which goes double for me, look what happened to Kana. Even if this child wasn't a threat he would still try and harm it." Hatori admitted.

Shigure wasn't sure how Hatori was going to handle his next statement, but he figured avoiding it altogether wouldn't help at all. "Akito's reign has been harsh, there would be quite a few of us that would welcome the change over, but we are not capable of going against Akito's wishes in order to ensure it. If there was a way to manage it though, would you be able to go through with that?"

"There might be a way," Hatori revealed, speaking slowly as he tested his theory on Shigure, ignoring the second part of the question for the moment. "Think about it, we all know there is one under the curse that is always caged after a certain point in their life. This a tradition older than Akito's tantrums. If he is really hated so much why go to the trouble of keeping him locked away? If we went by the story itself, it seems exiling him completely would be the more logical response to him. Why go to the effort to only restrain that member? The rest of us have to obey yes, but we are not literally thrown in a cell. It doesn't make sense unless they may pose some kind of threat."

Hatori's theory took a moment to sink in, but when it did he felt a glimmer of hope rise at the possibility of Hatori at least having a choice which one would live. "You're thinking about the cat aren't you? You think Kyo might have the ability to defeat Akito?"

"Nothing definite, but it is the only thing I have dug up that even had a chance of working. In the story, despite the fact the rat tricked him, the cat still is the only animal that did not obey the God's decree. That may have carried over as part of the curse." Hatori knew it was a risk to tell all this to Shigure. The dog himself pointed out if Akito asked him the right questions he would be forced to answer, the dog's cursed loyalty was a double edged sword.

"Kyo isn't anywhere close to being good enough to beat Akito in a fight." Shigure pointed out to the pondering dragon.

"You're right he isn't, but Yuki is the only Zodiac member that has fought Akito and won, that is how he earned his permission to leave the Sohma estate. I'm still not quite sure why Akito allowed the fight to happen, only Yuki and Akito know that much. He is still strong enough to defeat Akito, but there is no way the Rat could kill the God." The Rat's curse was very deeply ingrained in Yuki, and it was just as potent as any oif the others, he was essentially Akito's pet.

"I think I may have an idea, but it's risky and they are likely to kill each other before getting to Akito, but what if Kyo trained with Yuki? Not just in their typical brawl, but actually trying to learn from him? If Kyo can get over his anger and get strong enough to match Yuki, than he has a chance against Akito."

Hatori considered the possibility, and thought of the possible outcomes if it managed to work. "That may just work, but getting them to agree will be nearly impossible. Those two are like oil and water."

"I think you may be judging them a little too harshly, under normal circumstances they would never do it, but if we explain why they will do it, for you and because they both have grudges against Akito." Shigure was having trouble reading Hatori on this one, the Dragon's thoughts were so chaotic the dog wasn't sure if he wanted this plan to work or not, but Shigure knew this was something they needed to work through to the end one way or another.

"Do you think Kyo hates Akito more than he hates Yuki?" Hatori finally asked after several moments of agonizing thoughts.

"I don't know for sure, that's something Kyo would have to decide for himself if you want to try doing this. He may surprise us, as the reason he hates the Rat is because of the God in a roundabout way. As for Yuki, I know he had serious problem's with Akito, for good reason, and the one you carry now will be his niece or nephew. I don't see him walking away from that, as we have all seen the problem's Ayame's initial rejection caused those two."

"How long do you think it would take for Kyo to learn enough? Even if Akito doesn't ask you I will not be able to hide this for much more than another two months without him noticing, I will show earlier than a woman, and there will be pain as my body changes to accommodate delivery. By the forth month, if I'm not showing, the pain when I walk will give him enough reason to ask what's wrong." It still hurt to think about the source of his knowledge, but at least he knew what to expect.

Shigure realized Hatori still hadn't answered one important question from earlier, and even though he knew why Hatori was avoiding it, he knew it needed to be said or the Dragon would continue to agonize over this. "Hatori, are you sure you can go through with this? I mean it is Akito and I know what he means to you. Yuki and Kyo are impulsive, but not dumb, we tell them about your curse and more importantly why we know you are carrying the next God, and they are going to start asking questions. I wouldn't gloss over the past with those two Hatori, if they knew what you went through, it might motivate them to work harder."

"I don't know Shigure, going through with this plan would give both of them a fighting chance, it will come down to luck which one survives. I can't make that kind of choice, leave that in the hands of Kami. I don't see any way of avoiding telling them the truth, but if they can't handle it I can remove the conversation from their minds. I wouldn't be happy doing it but if I have to I will. This is dangerous for both of them, it has to be their choice, if they say no, I may have no choice but to eliminate this one. I really don't think I could handle going through the whole ordeal knowing it would never even have a chance of making it. No choice I make is going to be painless."

Shigure could see this plan was the only thing resembling hope Hatori had, the Dragon had a point, with this plan both the is god and the new had an equal chance of survival. It really would come down to luck, and whether or not Yuki and Kyo could swallow their pride and work together. "When do you want to tell them?"

"Soon, as much as I would like to hide it for as long as possible time is against us. If Kyo and Yuki agree they will need all the time they can get, and if they say no, well the earlier the better for the other option." Hatori was struggling to force the words out by the end, as calm and collected as he normally was, this situation was something that he couldn't just deal with, it was too big to handle all at once.

"If they agree what are we going to do when you start showing?"

"I haven't thought that far ahead. I will probably have to run at some point, but it can't be to another Sohma house or Akito will be able to track me. I will have to look for an alternative during the next month and see what I can find."

Shigure was reminded of how through Hatori could be, "How are you able to think so quickly with all of this going on?" He knew Hatori really hadn't known what to do before he started talking.

"I'm not nearly as calm as I sound," Hatori admitted, "But I won't get anything solved if I give into the panic." He knew he could only delay his reaction for so long before he was over run by the fear, he had to think while he still could.

Shigure was pleasantly surprised when Hatori leaned over and rested his head on Shigure's shoulder, usually Shigure was the more tactile person, but Hatori wanted to be close to the dog for awhile. The stress was catching up to the dragon, since he had discovered his condition there had been crisis after crisis that took up his energy and strength. Getting through the next few months was going to take all the strength he had, and probably more that he wasn't aware that he had.

"Hatori, right now I'm not sure exactly how, but we will keep you safe. Though I know that no matter how this ends you will loose something important to you, Ayame and I will be here for you through that part too. We will not leave you to deal with the aftermath alone." Shigure pulled Hatori closer, so that he was supporting most of Hatori's weight. Backing up his words with actions he held Hatori protectively, and feeling so tired, Hatori allowed him to do so. In the coming months the normally reserved doctor was going to depend on others to help him through it.

"I don't know what I want, there is a part of me that hopes nature takes care of this problem herself, but I don't think that will happen. Akito is sickly, but still far from natural death, as for this one if it has survived through the last few weeks with all the stress I have been under it must be strong and I don't see me loosing the child." Hatori admitted, hand on his abdomen again.

"Then it's settled, when the boy's get home from school we will have to tell them. That is if you can get away from Akito again this afternoon, I know you are taking a risk by coming here so often, Akito can only be sedated a few times before he will start having someone else test the tea before he drinks it." Shigure knew the longer they put off the plan, the worse off things would be, better to deal with it head on.

"It would be even more dangerous if we didn't talk to them as soon as possible. I need to go check on Haru and than return to Akito, he had probably been awake for the last hour or so, I have done this to him before. I will just tell him an emergency came up, and I thought he could use the extra rest while I wouldn't be available. It is the truth, just not all of it. It should suffice."

"How are we going to handle Haru? He can't go back to the main house until we find out what happened to him."

"I think it would be best if he stayed here to recover his strength, his zodiac lends him enough strength he is healing quickly, but it is still going to be at least a month before he will be fully functional again. As dangerous as Black Haru is, I also think it might be worth it to have him here to act as a buffer between Kyo and Yuki. Tohru is good at it, but the more help she gets the better." Hatori decided. The Ox was not one of the spirits that was heavily controlled by Akito, he didn't have to be. As a herd animal his natural affinity for following a leader and being part of a group made him the least likely to run. Though Hatori did suspect this underlying submissiveness was the reason he dressed and acted so rebelliously. It was just another duel aspect of Hatsuharu.

Shigure couldn't help but be curious as to how all this would work out. As worried as he was about both Hatori and the two boys under his care he was still wondering what would happen in the end.


	4. What Hurts the Most

**Set Fire To The Rain**

**Avangeline Fidela-Pierce**

**Chapter Four**  
><strong> What Hurts The Most<strong>

Hatori was on his way back to Shigure's house when he decided that if he was going to tell Kyo and Yuki that afternoon, there was one person that deserved to know about the situation first. Ayame. After all this affected him too. His decision made he turned his car towards Ayame's shop to tell the silver haired Sohma what was going on.

The three men that formed the Mabudachi trio had been together for a very long time. As members of the zodiac, normal relationships were complicated even before Akito came into the picture, it was relatively normal for the possessed Sohma's to become involved with each other. It was not an even distribution of males to females, that along with age concerns, paved the way for the three similarly aged cursed men to enter into a long standing arrangement together. It may have only been for convenience sake if it weren't for the horrible events that happened to the trio in their youth allowing them to cement their bond with love.

There was no denying that the three would occasionally look elsewhere for partners, and this was allowed within the group. They had so little freedom, taking away even that small pleasure was too cruel to do to each other. When Hatori met Kana, he found in her a match to the love he had for the other two, and he chose her to tell his secrets to. She had listened to him talk with ever growing horror and compassion. He just kept speaking and speaking, the past was like a poison being purged from his body. She listened to every word and still loved him. That was the deciding factor in getting engaged to her, an outsider had understood and accepted him. Than Akito attacked, he was convinced to erase Kana's memories, and his male lovers reminded him how good it felt to be comforted by someone who could hold you and remain human at the same time.

The human heart is capable of holding many loves, and the cursed zodiac members are no different. He had loved Kana, and if things had worked out just a little different they would have been happy together. That things didn't work out still hurt, but that didn't mean he had settled for Ayame and Shigure, they reminded him again and again that it was alright to mourn Kana and still love them too. He was allowed to do both without anyone being a replacement.

The child Hatori now carried could have just as easily been Shigure's, but the dog had been correct when he confronted him. It had been too long for it to be Shigure's. This one was definitely Ayame's and Hatori wondered how the flamboyant man would handle the difficult and dangerous situation their actions had put many people in.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Yuki knew something was wrong the moment they got home from school. Hatori was there for the third day in a row, and that could never be good news, the doctor was normally kept busy at the main house for long periods of time. His first thought was that something had happened to Haru, even though he had peaked in that morning and saw him resting comfortably.

"Why is Hatori here again?" Kyo mirrored his thoughts as they both raced towards the house. Glad for once that Tohru was at work and wouldn't worry herself sick again if there was something wrong with Haru.

They were admittedly surprised to see Shigure, Hatori, and Ayame sitting at the table, untouched tea cups in front of them, looking more serious than either Yuki or Kyo had ever seen them.

"What's going on?" Kyo was the quicker one to speak, hackles rising at seeing the additional man there. Ayame always adored teasing him.

"Sit down both of you, there are several things we need to talk about." Hatori took control of the conversation and ordered the boys to sit, this would be difficult enough without them hovering in the doorway the whole time.

Sitting at opposite sides of the table, the cat and rat looked uncomfortable being there, but settled in to listen anyway. "You three look far too serious, what's happened? Is it Haru?" Yuki asked in concern for the ox.

"Haru is fine, this is something different. I have a request to make of the two of you, but you will need more information than you currently have to make a solid decision." Hatori thought there was much worse ways this conversation could have started, at least the two of them hadn't come home in a fighting mood.

"Go ahead and start talking." Yuki encouraged, finding Hatori's reluctance to speak just as odd as the silence of his brother and Shigure. Whatever this was it was big, and Hatori was the one calling the shots on it.

"What do you two know about the Dragon spirit of the zodiac?" Hatori asked, curious to know how much those two had picked up of the other animals sharing in the curse.

"Not much, only that you are the only zodiac member to have a transformed shape that is a completely different species from your vengeful spirit." Yuki answered before Kyo.

"The dragon is the only mythical creature in the zodiac," Kyo added, "I thought that was why you had a different form, you can't change into something that doesn't exist."

"Ok, that is as good a place as any to start. You are both right, but Kyo take your observation a step deeper, you only answered part of the question. If it is indeed true that I can't change into something that doesn't exist, than what reason is there for me to turn into the specific shape I do?" Hatori couldn't have hoped for a better opening, this would ease them into the harder to handle information.

"You are asking us why we think you turn into a Seahorse and not something more reptilian or capable of flight?" At Hatori's nod, Yuki kept talking, "I never thought about it. That was just another part of the curse to me."

"You wouldn't ask us the question if there wasn't something important about it," Kyo started after Yuki admitted to not knowing. "So something about seahorses is important to the curse and is affecting you. It's something big enough it even has those two idiots acting nervous. So I doubt that living in the ocean is the point you were trying to make, it's gotta be something else."

As Kyo thought out loud the answer came to Yuki, and he paled. "Wait a second, there is something unusual about seahorses, in that species the males are the ones who give birth to the young."

Both Kyo and Yuki stared at Hatori with their eyes wide as saucers and their mouths hanging open in shock as the eldest living zodiac member nodded his head in confirmation. "But how? I mean you are human, that can't be, there's no way!" Kyo was beginning to think this might be an elaborate prank that Shigure and Ayame had pressed Hatori into helping them with, but the Dragon's next words cut him off.

"I am human yes, but never forget we are all cursed, I have a physical curse as well as the psychological one." Here Hatori had to press on quickly, he always hated to admit the next part, "All the Dragon's that are born appear male on the outside, but are internally female. The curse has made me a near perfect hermaphrodite. There are some differences between my condition that is brought on by a curse, and the one brought on by genetics, but it is the easiest explanation there is for my current predicament." He braced himself for the laughter that he assumed would come after hearing that. Superficially his condition could be called humorous, that was until the reality of what it meant had a chance to hit.

Hatori was lucky the two younger men were too shocked to laugh. This was not something they had ever even thought about happening. Yuki was the first to find his voice again. "Why are you telling us this now? This doesn't sound like something you would admit to unless you have to."

"I already mentioned I have something to ask from you two, and the sooner I ask the better." Hatori reminded him.

"So why don't you just ask already?" Kyo was shocked, but still wasn't sure how all this fit together and that irritated him.

Hatori knew with the way things were headed it was best to ask his questions first and explain himself after that. "I need the two of you to work together to kill Akito before this child is born."

Yuki was so stunned all he could stutter out was, "Why? How do you expect us to manage that?"

Kyo was so angry he couldn't get the words out before Hatori started answering Yuki.

"This is where those differences I mentioned about my condition versus a genetic one come into the equation. If it was purely genetic than I would either be able to carry any child or none at all. That is not the case with me. I can only carry a child possessed by the spirit of the God. There can be no two people alive possessed by the same spirit, so either Akito dies or this one does." Hatori wasn't sure if he wanted to reveal absolutely everything, but he felt Ayame cover his right hand with his own, while Shigure did the same with his left.

"Hatori, you need to tell them all of it. They deserve to know just what their actions mean." Shigure spoke, startling the boys enough to keep them quiet while they listened.

"I agree," Ayame also spoke up, "You have carried the secret long enough, it will do you some good to let go of it."

"What are they talking about Hatori? You have trusted us this far, we can handle the rest." Yuki assured, sending a glare at Kyo, that stupid cat had better not do anything to interrupt Hatori.

Yuki didn't have to worry because Kyo was too caught up in listening to Hatori's response after the Dragon laughed darkly, "Be careful what you wish for. What these two are trying to get me to tell is that this is not the first time this has happened. I was much younger, too young, when it happened. It was the most horrifyingly painful thing I have ever experienced. It all comes down to one principle, the Dragon can only carry the God, but it also means the God can only be born from the Dragon."

"You mean?" Hatori wasn't sure whether the barely whispered question was from Yuki or Kyo, but he answered anyway.

He took in a deep cleansing breath before starting the tale he had only told to one other person that wasn't sitting in the room with them. "Yes, Akito is my firstborn. I was not quite twelve when the previous God became fatally ill, and I was brought to a special room where they injected my body with hormones and stimulants to jumpstart my cycles. When it was confirmed that I was ready to conceive I was inseminated with the seed of the previous Ram. Another facet to the curse is the other parent must be in the zodiac as well. I wasn't old enough to appreciate it at the time, but from my current standpoint I am glad it was handled in a lab and not more, well directly would be the delicate way of putting it. I conceived only a few weeks before the previous God died. I knew when that happened that there was going to be no stopping what was happening to me.

My youth both helped and hindered my condition. I was strong, and my skin and muscles were more resilient so there was limited damage done with the added weight and girth. I paid for that relief because with my still small stature and male bone structure the pain I went through for my hips to loosen and widen to allow delivery got to point I could barely walk at all towards the end. Akito was and still is prone to illness partially due to the fact he was carried in a not fully mature body.

When Akito was finally born I was only able to hold him for a few minutes before he was taken away from me. He was raised to be the head of the family, and as the God he was born with the full knowledge of the curse and its mechanics. I could do nothing but watch as my son was changed into someone so cold and cruel. The only contact I was allowed with him as he grew up before I finally became the family doctor was when my ability to erase memories was needed. Though at that point I would rather no one remember him at all, rather than have all their memories be tainted by his cruelty. As the God Akito was born with a limited lifespan, and he knows it. He only has about another eight years to live even without this complication.

Yuki I know you don't want to hear this, because Akito has hurt you deeply and I know that, but he is actually younger than you by a few months. His actions towards you were done out of jealousy and rage, they don't excuse him but it might explain them." Hatori had run out of things to say for the moment, but he was sure there would be questions.

Yuki had been handed so many shocks today he didn't know how to process them all, his horror about Hatori's past mingled with his anger at Akito. He understood about the rage part, but what did Akito have to be jealous about? It couldn't be his family, after what they had done, no family was better than a family that betrayed you so deeply. He listed his head up slightly from where he had been staring at the table. "Does Akito know that you are his father? Do many people know?"

"Yes Akito knows, that is one of the main causes of his jealousy. He was raised to think I willingly abandoned him, not the truth that he was taken from me against my will. After all what person would believe a twelve year old would want to take on the responsibility of raising a child unless they knew what was done to me. I was kept isolated from people during the whole thing, no one knew the truth. I can imagine with my disappearance being timed the way it was someone may have guessed the truth, but no one else has confronted me about it. I told Ayame and Shigure once I was finally released because I knew I could never hide anything that big from them."

Kyo had been silent for once, thinking both about the story and the request Hatori had made. "What happens if we agree to your request?"

"Than each of my children has a fair chance at life. I will not force you to do this, or make you choose right away. This can only come from you two, just please hear out the plan first and consider it fully."

Cat and Rat nodded in unknowing unison, glaring a bit once they noticed the copied reaction. "Alright what is the plan? We are all unable to attack Akito without permission, and even if there was a way to fight, killing him is impossible." Yuki chose his words carefully

"For a member of the zodiac this is true but, there is one who may be able to and that is the Cat. Cursed but not in the zodiac the same rules may not apply to him." Hatori explained, getting some enjoyment out of the steamrolled expression on Kyo's face and the look of disbelief on Yuki's. He must have been pushing himself too hard lately if it only took that much to increase his happiness Hatori thought curiously.

Meanwhile as Hatori started going through the plan for the second time, Haru lay in the bed upstairs, the room was directly above the table where everyone had been talking. Haru had woken up when Hatori had arrived, Hatori coming to check his wounds once more while he had the chance. Haru suspected he was assumed to be asleep again as he doubted the conversation he was listening to was meant to be overheard.

As it was he could only lay there and hope someone asked the questions that the story brought up in his head. There was still some missing pieces, but Haru thought he had a pretty good idea of what was going on. Enough that if Kyo and Yuki refused to do this just because they were too stubborn to work together he was considering forcing the issue personally. Hatori had been there for him forever it seemed like. He would not let the older man down if there was anything he could possibly do to help. Even if it was only bashing some sense into Yuki and Kyo as Black Haru.


	5. Te Amo

Set Fire To The Rain

Avangeline Fierce

Chapter Five  
>Te Amo<p>

Tohru stepped out of work exhausted after yet another night of pushing herself as hard as she could. Looking around outside for her usual nightly escort she noticed that the person picking her up wasn't Yuki or Kyo, but Shigure. "Hello Shigure, did you have business in town tonight?" She asked thinking he might have been coming anyway and decided to pick her up on his way home.

"Why yes I did in fact, and she is standing in front of me," Shigure teased as they headed for home. "Yuki and Kyo are a little preoccupied right now, so I offered to come get you instead."

"Oh, what happened to them?" She asked worried they had managed to hurt each other in another fight.

Shigure glanced over at her, wondering just how much of the story she would be able to handle. Hatori had given permission for Tohru to know if the boys agreed to help, stating that she was part of the family, and living with them meant she would figure out something was wrong fairly quickly. For now though he settled with, "They aren't hurt or anything, they just have an important decision to make, once they do you can know more."

"Alright, I won't press then. How is Haru today?" She changed the subject away from Kyo and Yuki, otherwise her curiosity would get the better of her and she would start badgering Shigure about it.

"He is doing well, he is getting stronger, and was able to stay awake for most of the afternoon and evening. He will be healed up in no time. Well physically anyway." Shigure reported obediently, glad for the subject change.

"He still hasn't talked about it has he?" Tohru guessed.

"No he hasn't, he will need time to open up and talk to us. We are going to keep him with us until we get things figured out, it might be too dangerous to send him back to the main house until we know more." Shigure responded.

"I hope things work out well for him, he didn't deserve that, not at all." Tohru shook her head sadly, thinking of all the loss and pain her adoptive family and herself had gone through in their lives. It really wasn't a surprise that the Sohma's had accepted her as they had, they were very similar in background, she was an outsider that could relate to the isolation the cursed members felt around normal people.

"You are very kind Tohru, I'm sure Haru would appreciate what you just said. He acts tough, but that is mainly to protect himself, he could use a person like you around him while he recovers." Shigure spoke with a warm smile, Tohru's kindness was a welcome respite from the tension Hatori's news had caused.

"I will do what I can." Tohru assured, determined to help everyone that needed her.

As they neared their home they realized the peaceful night was being shattered by the occasional yell and loud crashing noise. With a horrified glance at each other Tohru and Shigure rushed the last few feet to the house.

Realizing the noises were coming from upstairs Shigure leaped up them two at a time, wondering if Haru had another nightmare. Though as he reached to slide the door open the crashing stopped and he heard Black Haru's voice echo menacingly in the room, addressing what sounded like both Kyo and Yuki. "You are both idiots! You are so selfish that you are willing to put your petty anger ahead of Hatori! Do you two have any idea what it took for him to ask you that? He is asking you to try to kill one of his children to save the other! This is Hatori we are talking about, the one that patches us up from fights, and treats us when we're sick, and he has to watch as his firstborn treats us with cruelty and hatred unable to do anything because his curse binds him against it! He treats all of us like we're his kids or little brothers, just imagine what that means for him to have no choice but to watch one of his real flesh and blood children die? Think about what he said, he is the only one of us that can bare the god, which means if you don't do this and Akito lives now, when Akito does die in a few years Hatori will have to go through all of this again! You will make him loose two children instead of one! This plan is going to kill a part of Hatori that he can never get back, but he asked you anyway, and you two wont get off your high horse long enough to help him? You're pathetic!"

Shigure slid the door open just enough to view the spectacle inside the room, Yuki had Haru's left side pinned, while Kyo was on the right, both straining to restrain the rage filled ox. The words coming from Black Haru hurting them worse than any punch the boy could ever throw and he was no lightweight. Haru was right and they knew it, the shame they felt at themselves was tremendous.

Glancing at each other across Haru's still struggling body they caught similar expressions of guilt. "Alright Haru, we'll do it." They said together, gritting their teeth and avoiding each other's glare as they did so. They would try doing this, but that didn't mean they had to like it. Too many years of nothing but hate would take more than a single lecture to remove. Something much more drastic would have to happen for that. Though they were grateful when Black Haru started to calm down and revert to his normal self after hearing their reply.

The fight was over, the need for his Black personality gone, it left him smoothly. Haru's eyes fluttered closed soon after Kyo and Yuki had let go, he was still healing and that had taken a lot out of him. He did have to hide the small smile that wanted to emerge at their response to his lecture. It had worked, which made the effort worth it. He didn't deliberately call out his darker personality very often, he made enough of a ruckus with just his accidental changes, he wasn't even positive anyone other than possibly Akito knew he even could call an episode on purpose.

"So I hear you two have made a decision?" Shigure asked slyly, opening the door fully and stepping inside.

"Yes, we'll do it, for Hatori." Yuki agreed quietly. Haru talking about Hatori taking care of them while they were sick reminded him of all the times Hatori had gently cared for him during his Asthma attacks. There was the additional fact that the child Hatori was carrying now was his brother's child too. His brother had rejected him when he had needed it most, that had hurt so badly, he wouldn't fail this new member of their family in the same way.

"Yeah, for Hatori." Kyo grumbled, knowing a lot would be riding on him to learn fast enough to have a chance against Akito. Though he hadn't failed to notice, and he doubted Yuki had either, that no one had mentioned the possibility of the theory behind all this being wrong and that the Cat couldn't touch the God any more than the animals within the zodiac.

"I am proud of you two," Shigure replied seriously, a state which wasn't quite as shocking to the boys, they knew he had both his playful side and serious side, it seems Hatori held a spot in the serious side. "Now Tohru is home as well, and there is no doubt in my mind she heard what Haru was yelling at you two, are you ready to go tell her the whole story?"

"Might as well get it over with." Kyo agreed, needing to be up and moving now that his mind was made up, sitting still was never a thing he liked doing unless he was deep in thought.

Yuki nodded but didn't speak as they followed Hatori down to the kitchen where a still speechless Tohru was cooking in order to keep from flipping out at the new information she had overheard. This was going to be a long conversation once again.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Akito how are you feeling tonight?" Hatori asked the zodiac god quietly. Giving him a basic checkup to make sure the sedatives had cleared his system smoothly and there would be no lingering aftereffects. Akito's health was very important at this stage, if Hatori wanted to be able to slip away and take care of his own needs than he couldn't be tending to a sick Akito every moment of the day like he sometimes did.

The room was dark and cool, Akito was wrapped in his favorite red robe, lounging back on his futon watching as Hatori took his vitals before replying. "I feel refreshed, but where have you been going? So many days in a row, what could be the problem? Why haven't I heard about it if it is bad enough to pull your attention elsewhere?" His tone demanded the truth, and quickly, it was cold and smooth, the edge of anger that never quite left his voice sharpened to a point as he spoke.

Hatori paused for only a second before taking the safest path. "Haru has gotten himself into another scrape. It looks like he went on a rampage and was harmed before someone could get him stopped. He is healing up smoothly now, but it was a bit touch and go at the beginning." Hatori had decided that with three days missing from Akito's side his basic explanation was not going to cut it. He only hoped his instinct that Akito hadn't done the damage inflicted on Haru was correct. Akito may have had something to do with it, but someone else had hurt him. Akito's rages were violent but quick, not like the methodical torture that Haru had undergone, that was too far even for Akito's tantrums that were very childlike despite their ferocity.

"Ah, that Ox was bound to get himself in trouble at some point." Akito seemed willing to accept the explanation, to which Hatori breathed a sigh of relief.

"Any nausea or headaches tonight?" Hatori changed the subject smoothly while Akito was in a willing mood, though the question was valid. The weight of the curse caused many physical side effects on Akito that were viciously unpleasant. Hatori's biggest regret was not being able to comfort Akito when he was a child, his son had been raised by the elder members of the zodiac to be the God of the Zodiac and head of the family, not as a little boy who was in pain. It was no surprise that Akito had never really matured, still throwing tantrums and holding onto jealousy so tightly it affected everyone, and as he aged the rage inside just got worse and worse.

"A minor headache, no nausea, but I had a nosebleed soon after I woke up." Akito reported as he relaxed backwards, laying down fully. It seemed like the older he got the more sleep he needed, and the more pain he was in. The zodiac members under his control had no idea how good they had it, even dealing with their own private curses. Glancing at Hatori out of the corner of his eye he watched the man mixing together a tea to help ease the pain he was feeling. He knew this man was his father, but the one time Hatori had tried to bring it up he had thrown a tantrum directed at the man who had abandoned him as soon as he was born, during it he had ordered Hatori to never speak to him about it again.

"Drink this, it should help. Anything else you need?" Hatori handed Akito the steaming cup of herbal tea, not liking to give him narcotics too often unless absolutely necessary. Akito knew when to ask for them and when to make do with the teas instead.

"No, I do not require anything else." Akito replied dismissively, not in the mood for talking with Hatori, or anyone really. He just wanted to sleep, despite the fact that seemed to be all he was doing lately.

"Goodnight Akito," Hatori responded, bowing slightly in respect before gathering his supplies, ready to leave his son in peace.

"Goodnight Hatori." Akito whispered, sipping his tea and watching the man leave, idly wondering what it would have been like to be raised by him. Those thoughts had come to him every now and again since he had learned the truth, but they never lasted long.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Saki Hanajima couldn't sleep. Her bed was too cold and empty without Tohru next to her. She smiled slightly at the thought. In all her years being alone before meeting Tohru, and even after that with the occasional sleepover, she had never felt like her bed was inadequate. Now though, just a relatively short time with Tohru and nothing felt right without her presence next to her.

Something had been bothering Tohru in the last few days. Saki knew she had been on the verge of telling her something over and over again but managed to hold herself back time after time. Tohru was such an honest person that Saki knew if she asked than Tohru would eventually end up telling her, but if Tohru felt it deserved that much effort to protect it, than Saki would not force her to tell.

Rolling over again she felt a warm patch in the bed where she had laid just a few moments earlier in her tossing and turning, she curled into that warmth trying to fool herself into believing Tohru had created the warm spot.

Saki didn't know how much longer she could take being away from Tohru. The sweet girl, and Arisa to a lesser degree, had become her rock in an ever increasing torrent of power. She had always been sensitive to people, knowing when they were angry or happy, without seeing their expressions, being accurate enough to frighten even her family. As she aged the power she had just grew stronger and stronger, never having a name, it just was what it was. She had learned not just how to sense people, but how to affect them in return, either with calming waves or a quick jab of pain. Once she had something to protect the ability to hurt people sharpened and increased to the point she rarely had to go further than threats anymore. The best weapon was the one you didn't have to use.

She gave a vocal sigh as she realized sleep would be alluding her for yet another night. She would just have to wait for Tohru to come back to her. That was the only solution to her predicament. She didn't know how long she could hold on, but she would give Tohru as much time as she possibly could. Her family was already getting suspicious of the time she spent with the brunette girl, a few days away wasn't entirely a bad thing, but at night when no one could see Saki let herself yearn for her rock in the ocean.


	6. Blind

**Set Fire to the Rain**

**Avangeline Fierce**

A/N: I said a wouldn't do unnecessary author's notes, but a reviewer brought up a point I felt needed to be addressed. They felt it was unusual for such a large number of people to all be gay, and it is a bit odd, but not unheard of. I am a lesbian myself and I can tell you people gravitate towards others like themselves, of the small group of friends I had in high school; 2 were lesbian, 2 were Bisexual, and only one was straight. Two of my characters are completely homosexual and that's Ayame and Haru, the rest are bisexual I believe that is a more common sexuality, it makes my plot plausible if not completely believable.

**Chapter Six**

**Blind**

Haru was up moving around finally. His progress was slow and full of pain, but he could make it from room to room at last and was rejoining the daily routine of the house. Though, walking down the stairs he still needed to be heavily supported, and that irritated him. He always had a lot of pride in his own independence, having to accept help just to move around was galling. He would get lost for three days before he would stop and ask for directions. Despite that it was worth it to make the painstaking trek downstairs just to see the now daily matches between Yuki and Kyo.

The two older Sohma's were amusing to watch. When not on the receiving end of their fists it was possible to see the power and technique backing up every move, but they all ended the same way. After a week of fighting Kyo still landed in a heap on the ground, bruised and battered from the match. Yuki still hadn't broken into a sweat, or was even breathing heavy by the time Kyo was on the ground. Having fought the Cat himself numerous times Haru knew Kyo wasn't weak, or a bad fighter, he was simply missing something that he would need to learn quickly if he had any hope of beating Yuki, and by extent Akito.

Haru wished his body was in good enough condition to practice with them, but he was just concentrating on getting back to his former good health before thinking of taking it any further than that. He contented himself by sitting next to Tohru, snacking on whatever treat she brought him that day, and telling her about the different moves Kyo and Yuki were using. Haru hadn't been very far off Kyo's level of training having been pushed into martial arts so young in the hopes of controlling his Black personality, it was fun refreshing his knowledge while including Tohru in the process. Haru liked Tohru, she was a sweet girl, and she took great care of all the Sohma men around her without complaint to the point the others wished she would be more vocal about her needs so they had a chance of taking care of her as well as she did them.

It took a week of watching before the problem started to show itself. Kyo was trying too hard and letting his anger towards the Rat get in the way. Whenever Yuki got near him all his training flew out the window and he started brawling. All Yuki had to do was wait for that to happen and take him out when his guard was down. Haru was feeling good that day, too good for his own well being possibly, so when he spotted the beginning of the next cycle he stepped between the two fighters at the critical moment. He saw Kyo's cinnamon eyes go round with realization as he pulled the punch and stopped himself with barely a hairsbreadth between his fist and Haru's cheek. Tohru had covered her mouth in horror, while Yuki had narrowed his eyes in irritation, readying an attack he would no doubt have launched had Kyo not been able to stop the hit in time.

"Kyo stop, this isn't going to work the way you have been going about it." Haru spoke quickly before the silent tableau could be broken.

"What do you mean this isn't going to work? You were the one who persuaded us to do this in the first place!" Kyo lashed out in displaced anger, still worked up from the spar.

Haru shook his head sadly, "You didn't do this because of me, you are doing this for Hatori, we already had that talk. Now calm down and listen. When you fight Yuki all you can see is the Rat you hate, try seeing the housemate and friend he has been becoming to you, and don't say that is isn't true. The only time you seem to really hate him anymore is when you fight, and that is the problem, that is why you haven't gotten any better."

Kyo's hackles seemed to rise at that, "I've gotten better!"

"No you haven't," Yuki interrupted, "I agree with Haru, but I thought I would just make it worse if I said anything about it."

"Well if the Damn Rat were a better teacher I would be getting better!" Kyo raged, not liking this at all, feeling more attacked now than when fists were flying.

"You can't learn, even from the best Sensei, if you are too angry to listen. You don't trust Yuki enough to learn, and when you fight you lose what little respect you have for him that might make up for the lack of trust. It's the first lesson. You grew up with the best Sensei the Sohma's ever had, you should know this already. You have got to find a way to beat this, to trust that Yuki isn't your enemy this time, Akito is. If you can learn that, you can fight Yuki and finally get better." Haru knew this from his own history, some teachers were better than others, some bad enough to fear a little boy with a temper problem. Haru learned nothing from a teacher that was too afraid to invoke Black Haru, they never gave him a chance to learn control over his dark side. They didn't trust him to control himself, and he didn't learn, the inverse was also true.

"Umm... I don't mean to interrupt, I'm sorry, but I might have an idea that could help." Tohru's voice was low, and she appeared to be blushing from the tips of her ears to the bottom of her toes.

"What is it? Anything that could help would be great." Haru encouraged, knowing it took a lot for Tohru to interject like that, and whatever it was would be worth hearing about.

She shifted a little in her spot, her blush deepening, "It's easier to show you I'll be right back." With that she was off and racing back to the house, presumably to get whatever it was she thought would help.

The three Sohma's exchanged bewildered glances until Tohru returned, slightly out of breath, with a small object balled into her fist. "Here, this could really help."

Kyo took the object from her and unfolded it, revealing a slim black blindfold. "Why a blindfold?"

"Where did you get that?" Haru asked before he could stop himself, at the same time as Kyo's question, and Tohru's blush returned.

"It's Hana's, sometimes seeing too much hurts her, and being in the dark lets her relax." She explained quickly before answering Kyo. "You need to trust Yuki right? Believe me, nothing encourages trust more than cutting off your sight and relying completely on someone else."

"That makes sense." Yuki commented, as Kyo kept examining the simple black cloth, light enough to tie in place, but thick enough to block all light, it wouldn't restrict movement while fighting, but it would truly leave a fighter blind.

"You expect me to wear this and let that Damn Rat do whatever he likes to me?" Kyo demanded.

"No, not at first." Tohru's blush was beginning to recede, she was helping them and that relieved some of her embarrassment. "I think Yuki should wear it first and than you, that would work better for you I think. If Yuki is willing to try it."

Yuki suddenly looked at the innocent cloth like it was a viper, even his skin was crawling away from it. The dark was not his favorite place to be by a long shot. Being in the dark with a known threat and no retreat was nearly unbearable. Only the thought of the desperation in Hatori's voice when he asked them to do this stopped him from rejecting the idea immediately. "What would I have to do?"

"Just wear it, and let Kyo be near you, even touch you. Trust him to do that without hurting you. Show him you trust him, and it will be much easier for him to trust you. From everything I heard, one-way trust isn't going to work for your fighting." Tohru was blushing slightly again, but not in embarrassment, she had some very sweet memories to go along with this speech.

"Is there anyway I can do this but stop if it gets too much, I don't like it, but I will do it for Hatori." Yuki asked softly, hoping no one noticed the tremors sliding up his spine at the thought of doing this.

Instead of looking at Yuki, Tohru turned to Kyo. "Kyo if Yuki tells you to stop will you listen to him? I mean Yuki could just take off the blindfold, but I think that would defeat the purpose, you are supposed to be learning to trust each other. Could you two back away when told to without argument or teasing?" She crossed her arms and glared at them for this, and they got a sudden image of Tohru as a mother and it made them sweat drop at the idea.

They locked eyes, battling to see who would give in and answer first. Yuki caved before they got too far, "I will obey if he does."

"Same here." Kyo responded, knowing he was the one this was really for, and that the whole plan rested on him. It was a lot to handle.

"Good. This might just work. Thank you Tohru, you helped us out a lot." Haru thanked her, giving her a one arm hug as an excuse to rest his branded leg. She felt the heaviness of the embrace, and knowing the cause, gave him an excuse to save face.

"I'm glad I could help, now I need to get dinner started, Haru do you want to help me? Kyo, Yuki, you may not want to try that blindfold until you have someone with you to supervise, it might not work the first time." Tohru advised them before leading Haru back into the house, Haru's arm slug across her shoulder's in what they hoped looked like a friendly gesture rather than the need for support that it was. He would be settled at the table with a glass of water and some painkillers before a single grain of rice hit a pan.

"We haven't killed each other yet, if it doesn't work the first time we will just brush ourselves off and try again, we don't have time to waste." Yuki just wanted this over with, the sooner the better.

"Yeah, he's right. We need all the practice we can get." No one corrected the 'we' in his statement, they knew it was taking a lot of patience for Kyo to do this, keeping his pride was a small thing that helped him through it.

Kyo handed Yuki the blindfold, allowing the Rat to tie it comfortably around his head himself. Yuki could honestly say now that it was just as bad as he thought it would be. He knew Kyo was barely three steps away from him, could hear the even breathing coming form the cat, feel the breeze blowing through the yard, but no bit of light or color hit his eyes. Hearing the first step towards him had all his defenses up, muscles coiling like springs, ears straining for any hint of Kyo's presence.

Kyo was surprised at just how tense Yuki got as he neared him, he stilled his hand as he reached out to put a hand on Yuki's shoulder. Maybe such a bold touch was a bad idea, with how prepared Yuki was Kyo knew the Rat could knock him out before he could stop himself. Instead he dropped the reaching hand lower, to one of Yuki's hands clenched so tightly into a fist his knuckles were white with his nails digging into his palms. Stroking lightly down the back of Yuki's right hand, Kyo was ready and moved back quick enough he wasn't injured by Yuki's startled jump. "Are you really that frightened of me?" Kyo couldn't stop himself from asking, a bit of awe in his voice.

"If you had any idea how hard this is, you wouldn't bother asking about it. It's not you. When it's your turn you will understand more. Just get it over with. Keep going until I don't jump anymore. I will stop this if I am too far gone to control myself anymore." Yuki tried explaining, but knew Kyo wouldn't get it until he had the blindfold on himself. Despite knowing this was the best thing for them, he couldn't stop himself from wishing Tohru had never brought this up.

Kyo didn't bother nodding, as Yuki couldn't see it, instead he thought about what to do next. If he kept touching the same spot all the time, Yuki could anticipate and stop himself from jumping before he really trusted Kyo. Better to change it up and have Yuki's response be more genuine.

Circling Yuki he saw the Rat tensing even further, it made him curious about just why this was so hard for him. He said this was about Kyo himself, what about being blinded scared him so badly? He didn't think Yuki was afraid of the dark, they had shared a house long enough Kyo was sure he would have noticed something like that by now, but did Yuki really think he was that vulnerable without his sight? Yuki had beaten just about every opponent ever put in his way, had he been blinded before and forced to fight? Lost a fight in the dark before maybe?

Kyo knew it was a bad idea. That serious physical harm could come from it, but he wanted to know what would happen. Stepping quietly toward Yuki, he came up behind him and lightly touched the back of Yuki's neck. The reaction was just as energetic as he predicted. Yuki flew around in a circle, the powerful roundhouse catching Kyo in the diaphragm knocking the wind out of him as it threw him fifteen feet away, the landing ripping his clothing and tearing into his skin.

Yuki ripped the blindfold off his eyes, breathing heavy, his pupils dilated as he looked around wildly, seeing Kyo in a heap on the ground. "Do not EVER touch me there. No matter what, whether I can see or not. If you want me to trust you at all it better not happen again." Even in the half-daze the kick had him in, Kyo could hear the anger in Yuki's voice.

Picking himself up out of the heap his own impulses had put him in, he carefully observed the wildness Yuki was showing, in complete contrast to his usual stoicism. "What happened to you?"

Yuki's wild eyes gaze landed on him, and in a voice far more serious than his crazed appearance suggested he spit out a reply. "Akito used to blind fold me, hold me against a wall by the back of my neck, and hit me with whatever he could reach. I am not just doing this for Hatori. I want Akito gone. I know it is wrong. That Akito is Hatori's son and despite everything he still loves Akito. I can't forgive him. If this is real, if you can pull it off and kill him, you will be doing me a favor. I will keep teaching you, keep trying to trust you, all because I want Akito gone forever."

Looking at Yuki in that moment Kyo believed every word.


End file.
